Museum of Rhinebeck History For more information about the event, call 845-876-2436 or email bklaproth@ymail.com. Celebrating Rhinebeck's Rich Heritage Volume XIX, No. 2 November 2012 HOLIDAY AUCTION FRIDAY, November 16 The Museum will be teaming up with the Chancellor Livingston Chapter of the DAR once again for the very popular Holiday Auction. The location will be the Rhinebeck Town Hall at 80 East Market Street. Viewing will begin at 6:30 PM, the auction itself at 7:00 PM. Absentee bids will be accepted. SPOOL CHEST DONATION In July the Museum of Rhinebeck History received a unique piece of furniture with Rhinebeck provenance (history of ownership). It was a sevendrawer sewing table, or spool chest, with elegant glass knobs. The piece was donated by Mrs. Mildred B. Miller who had donated an interesting collection of objects earlier in the year, and numerous other objects in years past. The main event will be a huge live auction featuring collectibles, antiques, themed gift baskets, wine, hand-made items, baked and food Items, books, holiday decorations, and gifts both old and new. There will also be a silent auction of theater tickets and gift cards from local businesses. In another area there will be a refreshment stand selling chili, cornbread, donuts, and cider. And finally, the auction will include a White Elephant table full of tag-sale items. This presents all Museum and DAR members and the public at large with an opportunity to get in some early holiday shopping, and to do so in a manner that simultaneously supports the promotion of local history by contributing to two organizations committed to its preservation and promotion. The piece belonged to Mrs. James Hannaburgh of Rhinebeck who had 1
President s Message The Museum exhibit season is over and we are busy preparing for next year. The 2013 exhibit will focus on textiles. There are a wide variety of textiles in the Museum collection, every thing from vintage clothing, military uniforms, quilts, samplers and much more. Steve Mann will prepare the exhibit with Krista Miller our intern from this past spring. Krista has stayed on as a volunteer and we are thrilled to have her help and input. The Progressive Dinner was a huge success. The Museum partnered with the Rhinebeck Historical Society on this fundraising event. The weather was perfect, the homes stunning and the food delicious. This year the event was held in July which is a change from previous years, but it worked out well and another event will be scheduled for next summer. Stay tuned for details. Mark your calendars! And buy a calendar! The Fourth Annual Holiday Auction will be held Friday, November 16 th ; 6:30 PM, at the Rhinebeck Town Hall. Again, we are working with the Chancellor Livingston Chapter of the Daughters of American Revolution and each year it gets bigger and better. In addition to the regular auction items we will also have a silent auction table, white elephant table, homemade goodies and chili for dinner if you are so inclined. Please join us and tell all your friends! 2013 calendars will also be available at the auction. Mara has done a terrific job putting together this unique and colorful item. The focus is on violets. There is a limited supply so don t wait. They make great holiday gifts. A new board member, Sarah Bachelier has created a Facebook page for the Museum. 2 Please check it out and friend us if you are on Facebook. This is an ongoing project so let us know what you think. Again, thank you for your support and Best Wishes for the New Year. Beverly Kane SPOOL CHEST DONATION (continued from page 1) made the two quilts and owned the nursing rocker donated previously. The feet are ball feet which almost always identify a piece as being made in the Hudson Valley, sort of a signature style if you will. The back of the chest is all one piece of wood. The finish is believed to be cherry. It appears to be completely original. It is believed to be a Civil War-era piece. This beautiful table/chest will be shown in the 2013 Museum exhibit on textiles. It will be shown with open drawers graduated out with sewing-related objects in them. The exhibit has been partly assembled already and will be installed for May. The Museum is very indebted to Mrs. Miller and her family for this generous donation, and to Marilyn Hatch for her assistance in securing it. The table certainly is a nice addition to the permanent collection. Steven Mann
2013 Calendar Now Available The Museum is pleased to announce that our 2013 calendar will become available on November 16, at the time of our annual Town Hall auction. It will also be on sale at Oblong Books. The theme is Violets and the role they have played in local history. The calendar is very reasonably priced at $10 and all sales will support Museum operations. Each of the months has been sponsored by a local business, and those thirteen businesses have underwritten the Museum s cost of producing the calendar. If you cannot come to our auction to buy the calendar, but wish to order the calendars directly from the Museum, send a check for $12 payable to MRH, and mail it to MRH, PO Box 816, Rhinebeck, NY 12572. (The additional amount is for postage and handling.) A Question for Our Members Museum exhibits are the main way the Museum shares with the public the history it works to preserve. The following is a list of 3 themes from prior years: The First Century (18th); Antebellum Rhinebeck; The Civil War; The Gilded Age; The Violet Industry; World War I; The Roosevelt Years & World War II; Early Rhinebeck Industries; Rhinebeck s Sporting Life; Rhinebeck: The Parlor City; Seeing Rhinebeck Through Postcards; East & West Market Street, Mill & Montgomery Street; The Hamlet of Rhinecliff; The County Fair; and The Wurtemburg Lutheran Church. Because of space limitations, any single exhibit can show no more than 40 or 50 items, usually a combination of artifacts, documents, and photographs. Since there are over 10,000 items in the overall collection, the decision about what to single out is very important. Everything else remains in the archives, hoping to be chosen for the next exhibit. The Museum s goal is to share items that will most effectively illustrate and explain a theme pertaining to the history of Rhinebeck. The theme provides a context that puts together items that, by themselves, may not seem important or interesting, but when grouped together work to tell a more complete story. As we develop themes for future exhibit, we are eager to hear recommendations from our members about what YOU think might serve as an appropriate future theme for our Museum exhibits. Please share your ideas with our Museum President, Beverly Kane, at 38 Mill Rd Rhinebeck, NY 12572; 845-876-3894 or neilbev81@hotmail.com. Thanks for your input.
Progressive Dinner Features Donation of Two Important Documents It rained the night before and the morning of July 29 th, but the sun appeared just as guests began arriving at Half Moon, and the day remained bright and sunny as everyone meandered uphill to Stonecrest to enjoy dessert. Views of the river competed with views of these magnificent homes illustrating very different architectural styles almost a century apart very late 20 th at Half Moon, very late 19 th at Stonecrest. Joanne Clarke presents documents The highlight was a special presentation made to the Museum by siblings Joanne Clarke and Tremper Saltsman of Rhinebeck. This part of the dinner took place at the private residence Stonecrest overlooking the Hudson River, hosted by Albert and Aida Wilder. Two very special documents, in recently reframed museumquality matting and glass, were donated to the Museum's permanent collection by the Saltsman and Clarke families. They were accepted by Museum President Beverly Kane and Rhinebeck Historical Society President David Miller. The vertical document certifies one handcrafted sleigh made by John G. Ostrom in the American Institute. The document was printed by the same firm that was the official printer of American currency by the U.S. Treasury Department, and their offices were on Wall Street in New York City, NY. It was signed in October 1857. The beautiful graphics represent industrialization such as farming and rail transportation, and images of our country's leaders including those signing the Declaration of Independence. It is a magnificently produced certificate with great detail in the engraving. The horizontal document is a certificate for George Tremper, signed by President Theodore Roosevelt in January 1906. It certifies Mr. Tremper as the official Rhinebeck, NY postmaster. The Tremper Building, located just north of the Rhinebeck Savings Bank, was a large brownstone building that housed the Rhinebeck post office before President Franklin Delano Roosevelt had the current post office built. It was torn down in the early 1940s. We are indebted to the siblings and their offspring for allowing these two important documents, related to the history of two noteworthy Rhinebeck families, to be donated. They have been accessioned and are now part of the Museum of Rhinebeck History's permanent collection. Both will be hung in next year's exhibit so that they may be viewed and appreciated by the public. 4
MUSEUM OF RHINEBECK HISTORY MEMBERSHIP FORM PO Box 816, RHINEBECK, NY 12572 Phone: 845-871-1798 DUES INVOICE FOR THE PERIOD January 1 through December 31, 2013 Name Address City, State, ZIP Phone E-mail Enclosed is my tax-deductible check in the amount of $ Please enclose your employer s form if your employer has a matching grant program (e.g. IBM). Please apply my payment for the year 2013 as follows: Lifetime $1,000 Family.$15 Lifetime option $250 x 4 years Individual...$10 Sponsor...$100 Student.$5 Business.$50 Other..$ Patron $50 Added Donation $ TOTAL.$ Please make checks payable to MUSEUM OF RHINEBECK HISTORY and mail to the Museum at the address above. Thank you! NOTE: If you have family archives that you wish to donate to us, please check below and someone from the Museum will be in touch with you. 5
DOCENTS NEEDED Attention Rhinebeck Natives!!! Share your knowledge and wisdom of your town as a Docent at the Museum of Rhinebeck History. Hours for volunteering are Saturdays or Sundays from 2-4pm during the period between May and September. Learn about this season s collection and meet our visitors. Contact: Mara Marrero 845-797-5070 for more information. MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL We depend on member dues. The cost of membership is very reasonable, a small price to pay to protect, preserve and display our growing collection. The membership form is on the other side of this page. Before you forget, please complete and send it in to us with your check. Your support is needed and very much appreciated. ADDRESS CHANGES MUSEUM CALENDAR Friday, November 16, viewing at 6:30, auction at 7:00 PM Holiday Auction at Rhinebeck Town Hall, 80 East Market Street May through September 2013 Museum Exhibit, Textiles in Rhinebeck s History, at 7015 Route 9, Rhinebeck (Quitman House). If you expect any change in your address, or if you are aware of any fellow Museum members who have recently moved, please notify Janice Scriber, the keeper of our membership records, at 845-876-6864, or email her at jabs43@frontiernet.net. Museum of Rhinebeck History P.O. Box 816 Rhinebeck, NY 12572 2012 Board of Trustees & Advisors Holiday President Beverly Kane V. Pres--Ellen S. Hubbert Rec Secy Mike Frazier Corr Secy Janice Stickle Treasurer Mara Marrero Curator Steven A. Mann Ada Harrison Janice Scriber Sarah M.E. Bachelier Kay T. Verrilli Two vacancies 6 Advisor Nancy V. Kelly Advisor Brenda J. Klaproth Advisor Marilyn Hatch Holiday Auction November 16 th, 6:30 Rhinebeck Town Hall Please join us!